NBA First Basket Scorers & Picks: Sunday (Knicks vs. Pacers)
The best way to win in the NBA is to score the first points, so let’s look at which players could do that for their team today with our top NBA first basket scorers picks and predictions.
Sunday's Best NBA First Basket Scorers & Picks
New York Knicks at Indiana Pacers
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
The Pacers are in the driver’s seat with a 2-0 lead as they head home in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Knicks have had trouble adjusting to Indiana's up-tempo offense, which is the third-fastest in the playoffs and was the sixth-fastest in the regular season. The Knicks will need to figure out how to slow them down, but teams have struggled to do so throughout the postseason.
In this series, just because a team gets the first points doesn't mean they win, as each team has a first basket in this series. However, both teams have scored on their first possession, so the tip-off is important in this situation. It should be Myles Turner versus Karl-Anthony Towns in the opening tip-off, and the advantage goes largely to Towns, who has won 46% of his tips to Turner's 30%.
Jalen Brunson, Towns, and Mikal Bridges lead the team with two first baskets in the postseason, but Brunson is the one who usually gets the team's first field goal attempt at 42% this season.
The Knicks have their backs against the wall and do not want to go down 0-3. They will likely put this game on Brunson's shoulders, and we should see an uptick in shot attempts, including the first of the game.
Pick: Jalen Brunson (+370)